Convertible base for high-power tubes



Oct.- 19, 1954 C. WERNER ET AL 2,692,373 I CONVERTIBLE BASE FOR HIGH-POWER TUBES Filed June 25, 1951 INVENTORS L EE/V5 I J? KNOCHEL Y 9 ATT-ORNE'Y Patented Oct. 19, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CONVERTIBLE BASE FOR HIGH-POWER TUBES Application June 25, 1951, Serial No. 233,428

2 Claims. 1

This invention relates to electron discharge devices and more particularly to an arrangement for connecting electrode-leads sealed through the glass walls of a tube to terminal pins set in a tube-base.

Electron tubes are usually provided with socalled bases having terminal pins connecting to leads sealed through the tube walls, and designed for connection to external electric circuits. Usually these terminal pins are spaced apart from each other at uniform distances from the central axis of the tube, and the order of the pins connected to various tube electrodes such as cathode terminals, grids and so on has become standardized in the course of time. A tube of any established commercial type, such as a high power pliotron for instance, would simply not be salable if its base and pins were not in the standardized arrangement.

The arrangement of the in-leads sealed through the tube-walls and their connection within the tube to the various electrodes creates a problem for the tube designer, and when, to take advantage of new developments in the electronic art, a new design is made a new problem in crossconnecting the electrodes to the base-pins often arises. To give an example, the most acceptable redesign of a high power pliotron recently had a diagram for the connections between the base-pins (represented by circles) and the inleads sealed through tube Wall (represented by crosses) like that shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

This invention is an improved arrangement for making interconnections between base-pins and in-leads by which standard parts easy to produce by widely used factory processes may be assembled into a simple rugged and economical structure capable of giving any desired interconnection.

In general terms, then, the object of this invention is to provide an improved base for electrical discharge tubes.

A more particular object is to provide an improved structure for interconnecting the terminal pins and in=leads on electrical discharge tubes.

Another object is to provide an arrangement by which the in-leads sealed into the walls of an electrical discharge tube may be connected to the pins of a standardized tube base.

. Still another object is to provide an arrange ment by which simple and cheap standardized parts may be assembled with a standard tube base to provide any desired interconnections of to those skilled in the art to which it appertains as the description proceeds, both by direct recitation thereof and by implication from the context.

Referring to the drawings on which like numerals of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views:

Fig. l is a schematic diagram of connections used to explain the invention;

Fig. 2 is an elevational view, partly in section, of an electron tube of the high-power pliotron type equipped with a base embodying the invention;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view to larger scale of a connecting structure embodying this invention when used to provide the connections of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section along the line IV-IV in Fig. 3;

Figs. 5, 6, '7 and 3 are plan views of the four types of disc which together make possible assembly of a connecting unit for any desired in terconnection of a six-pin base to a six-in-lead tube; and

Fig. 9 is a plan view of insulating washers used between discs in the assembled unit.

Fig. l is believed to have been suificiently described above.

In the specific embodiment of the invention illustrated in said drawings, the reference numeral l0 designates an electrical discharge device in general which may be a triode having an anode l I forming part of its envelope sealed to glass base or bowl I 2 through which in-leads l3 to the oathode pass in vacuum-tight seals of well-known type. The tube i0 is supported in position and connected to the conductors of electric circuits using it by means of a base it which may be of metal provided with terminal pins !5 passing through it in insulating bushings [6. As has been stated above, the sequential order in which the terminal pins I5 must be arranged to suit electric use-circuits may be diiierent from that of the in-leads 13, which leads to the simplest structure inside the tube; and in accordance with this invention, the in-leads I3 are connected electrically to the proper terminal-pins [5 by an interconnecting-structure ll.

As will be seen in detail in Figs. 3 and 4, the interconnecting-structure comprises six discs 2|, one for each tube in-lead I3, the discs 21 being faced on each side against one face of seven sheets 22 of insulating material. The assembly of discs 21 and sheets 22 is held together in any suitable way as, for example, by a through-bolt 23 at their centers. Each disc 2| has one of the six terminal-pins set perpendicular to one of its faces, the six pins being thus spaced at 60 degree intervals on the circumference of an outer circle. Each disc also has one of the six connectors 24 set perpendicular to its other face, the six connectors being thus spaced at 60 degree intervals about the circumference of an inner circle, all as shown clearly in Figs. 2, 3 and 4. Each disc thus interconnects one terminal pin with one connector. The other five terminal pins and connectors which are not affixed to that particular disc pass through insulating bushings set in the disc. These bushings and the insulating sheets 22 thus insulate each disc and its attached terminal-pin and connector from all the other discs terminal-pins and connectors. Each connector has at its upper end a clamp 25 which grips one of the six iii-leads l3.

It will be noted in Fig. 1 that two terminal pins (on outer circle) are connected to connectors I (cross on inner circle) which lie on the same radius; for example, pin #4 is on the same radius as cross #4A to which it is connected; and pin #6 is on the same radial line as cross #6A to which it is connected. In other words, the pin and connector are zero degrees apart around the circle. On the other hand, terminal-pin #5 is separated by 180 degrees around the circle from the connector #291 to which it is connected; andthe same is true of terminal-pin #2 and connector #5A. Further, it will be seen that terminal-pin #1 is separated by 120 degrees of circle from the connector #3A to which it is electrically connected;- and the same is true of terminal pin #3 and connector 1A.

It is thus apparent that by providing discs of three different types; (I) that shown in Fig. 5 having holes 26 and 21 on the same radius in which the ends of a terminal pin and a connector may respectively be affixed; (II) that shown in Fig. 6 having holes 28 and 29 180 degrees apart on-their circles in which the ends of a terminal pin and a connector may be affixed; and (III) that shown in Fig. '7 having holes 3| and 32 which are 120 degrees apart on their circles, in which the ends of a terminal pin and a connector may be afiixed, all of the interconnections of Fig. 1 may be provided by assembling two discs of each type, are total of six discs, into a unit with separating and facing insulating sheets 22 as shown in Fig. 9.

Clearance holes 33 of large enough diameter to admit insulating bushings are provided at the (ither'60 degree points around the circles. Such discs may be very cheaply provided in large numbers by simple punching operations on brass or copper sheet. To facilitate punching, the material between two of the clearance holes on the same radius may be included in the stock removed if desired, thus forming the elongated rounded-end slots 34 shown in Figs. 5 through 9.

Itwill be pointed out that while the particular interconnections of Fig. 1 involve no cross-connection between a terminal-pin and connector which are 60 degrees apart around the circle, other connections between six terminal pins and six in-leads might require such a combination;

.use of discs for interconnection of pin and connector combinations of other numbers in ways that should be clear to those skilled in the art. For example, an 8-pin base would be carried out with holes punched on eight radial lines. Also, while we have, for simplicity, shown the radial lines as equally spaced apart around the circles, the system may be carried out with unequally spaced radii.

We claim:

1. In combination with an electrical apparatus comprising a container having a plurality of inleads projecting through its walls and positioned on the circumference of a circle, an intercon-j necting structure comprising a pile made up or conducting plates alternating with insulating separators, said conducting plates having two concentric series of openings therein one opening in each series being smaller than all other openings of the series, a connector and a terminal pin projecting normally from each plate on oppositesides thereof and positioned and secured respectively in said smaller openings of the two seriesof openings, said connectors each being connected respectively to one of saidin-leads, the openingsother than said smaller openings permitting the other terminal pins and connectors topass there- 7 through without touching anyother plate.

2. A base for high power tubes comprising in combination with a tube having in-leads projectducting plates interposed transversely between said in-leads and pins and said pins being connected each to a different one of said plates and insulated from all other plates, and connectors respectively radially inward from the in-leads and in a circular series smaller than the series circle of the in-leads, said connectors being secured to selected ones of said plates and to the radially op-'- posite ones of said in-leads and insulated each from all other plates.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,489,283 Smyth etal. I Apr. 8,- 1924i 1,516,837 Wright Nov. 25, 1924 2,006,436 Bowers July 2, 1935 2,066,876 Carpenter Jan. 5,- 1937' 

